Background of the Study

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CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

This chapter explains the introduction of the study. It consists of six parts. The first part is background of the study. This part conveys the reasons for choosing the non-finite clauses as the subject of the study. The second part is problem formulation. This part reveals the problems that are discussed in the study. The third is problem limitation, whose function is elaborating the boundaries on which the research is conducted. The fourth is objectives of the study. The fifth is benefits of the study, which conveys the advantages of conducting the research. The last part is definition of terms, which describes the terms used in the research.

A. Background of the Study

As candidates of English teachers, the English Language Education Study Program students are supposed to master all things related to the education system and also English language as the subject matter. English itself consists of the four language skills, namely listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Besides, it also contains the language elements, namely grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary mastery. The teacher candidates should master all of those mentioned above, so that later they are able to become good teachers and to help their students to learn English. 2 One of the problems in language learning is the mastery of grammar. There are so many topics that should be learned by teacher candidates, and one of the topics is the non-finite clauses. The teacher candidates, especially the senior students, are expected to be able to express complex ideas by using either the finite clauses or the non-finite clauses in order to convey the ideas more effectively instead of using simple sentences. Mastering the finite and non-finite clauses is important for them, but the non-finite clauses are considered more difficult than the finite clauses. Based on the writer’s experience, the non-finite clauses are difficult because they are complex in relation to their syntactic functions. The non-finite clauses can function as adverbial clauses, adjective clauses, and nominal or noun clauses. Besides, there are rules which are restricted in use, which the students still generalize. Those complexities cause difficulties for the learners. Moreover, tense markers, modal auxiliaries, and sometimes subject are omitted in the non-finite clauses Quirk and Greenbaum, 1985: 311. Those lacks make the non-finite clauses difficult to be learned and make the students confused in constructing them. Furthermore, based on some informal interviews conducted with several senior students of the English Language Education Study Program on July 2007, half of the respondents said that the non-finite clauses were difficult. One of them said that he was confused when to use to-infinitive and when to use gerund. In addition, based on the interview conducted to two English lecturers who taught grammar, it was found out that the students often mixed the rules of the non-finite 3 clauses and of the finite clauses. In addition, the students also had interference with Indonesian. Knowing that the non-finite clauses are essential and should be mastered by students of the English Education Study Program, it is important to measure their ability of using the non-finite clauses through research. The research results can show whether the students have the capability to use the non-finite clauses or not. The research was conducted to the sixth semester students, with the consideration that they have learned about the non-finite clauses comprehensively in their Structure V course. Therefore, they are supposed to master and be able to use the non-finite clause correctly. The research results were used by the researcher to provide some suggestions especially for the lecturers who teach Structure V, in which the non-finite clauses are taught.

B. Problem Formulation